PRESS RELEASE–California’s Artificial Stone Fabrication Workers Face a Silicosis Epidemic

A press release from Brayton Purcell LLP highlights a growing public-health emergency affecting artificial stone countertop fabrication workers across California. The release reports that “dozens of artificial stone workers, mostly young Latino immigrants, have been diagnosed with fatal accelerated silicosis — an incurable and rapidly progressive lung disease caused by inhaling crystalline silica dust.”

Artificial stone, widely used for residential and commercial countertops, contains more than 90 percent crystalline silica, far greater than the amount found in granite or marble. When slabs are cut, ground or polished, they release nano-sized crystalline silica particles that lodge in the lungs and cause irreversible scarring.

The press release cites research from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), and Cal/OSHA, each documenting rapidly increasing cases of accelerated silicosis among artificial stone countertop fabricators. These studies found that even when safety measures such as wet cutting or ventilation are used, silica exposure levels remain dangerously high, and workers continue to develop disease at an alarming rate.

According to the release, “California now faces a crisis reminiscent of the early days of the asbestos epidemic.” Brayton Purcell LLP explains that manufacturers and distributors have allegedly known about the dangers for decades yet continue to make and sell artificial stone slabs without adequate warnings to employers or workers. As a result, many workers remain unaware that even brief exposure to artificial stone dust (as little as a few months) can rapidly lead to fatal illness.

Brayton Purcell LLP, nationally recognized for its advocacy on behalf of individuals harmed by toxic exposures, emphasizes that scientific research consistently demonstrates there is no safe way for humans to fabricate artificial stone slabs, as even the most sophisticated methods inevitably generate lethal levels of respirable crystalline silica.

Read the full press release from Brayton Purcell LLP here.

If you or someone you know has worked with artificial stone and developed respiratory symptoms, contact Brayton Purcell LLP to learn more about your rights and available legal options.